Project Completion Gallery

Completed Basement

This project is a fitting example of home customization for a growing family. As a family grows the home they live in adapts and changes. Within the walls and under the floors of each home are remnants of what was. If you know where to look you can see there is a story being told. We consider it an honor to be a part of the story!

The Story

The Location

Legacy is Southeast Calgary’s newest community; located at the southernmost point of the city. It has been designed as an all-inclusive community that will eventually provide residents with schools, shopping, entertainment, and nature. It is also a mixed-lifestyle community with a variety of housing options to accommodate singles, young couples, families, and mature couples alike. Building a home in Legacy is an appealing option for anyone who wants to escape the congestion of the city and enjoy the natural landscapes that Calgary was built upon.

The Residence

All the houses in Legacy have been built by one of the big local home-building companies. This house, like so many others, was built with an unfinished basement. This gives the owners an opportunity to customize their home to suit their lifestyle. It is one of the ways that the house evolves to support the needs of the family it protects. Another common feature that this house shares with it’s neighbors is a detached double-garage. Although the garage is a desirable feature, this one had only a partial curb perimeter which created areas where the drywall and wood framing were exposed to water.

The Family

The homeowners are happy to be in Legacy and love their new home. They are a young couple with two small children. They plan to grow their family and look forward to benefiting from the further development of the community as they stay in Legacy for the foreseeable future. With their growing family they hoped to make better use of their basement space. Prior to the renovations it was a combination play room, storage room, exercise space, and office. They wanted their children to be able to play without getting into the storage and they wanted to be able to fulfill their passion for movies and games in a comfortable space. By finishing the basement, they would have more organized space including a bedroom (used as a play room), a TV room for movies and gaming, and a 3-piece bathroom.

Project Progression

The Basement Development

The first step toward the ideal basement development was mapping out the existing footprint to get the maximum space and ideal layout for each room. The plumbing stack and drain were conveniently located, but we still had to break into the concrete to install proper drainage for the built-in bathtub/shower. With that out of the way we framed the new walls and installed a flooring underlayment to separate the flooring from the cold damp concrete floor. The underlayment acts as a vapor barrier, but also creates a cushion of air that helps keep the finished floors warm to the touch. On top of the underlayment we installed ¾ inch OSB sub-flooring to support the finished dark-oak vinyl.

Subtle Enhancements

A unique feature of this basement is that the bathroom and mechanical room walls were insulated to cancel out any noise transfer into the TV room. This is a subtle enhancement that creates a more comfortable and enjoyable space. Another gentle touch in the new basement is a custom-built cabinet for the electrical panel. The custom cabinet ties into the design of the new room as an attractive feature rather than an eye-sore.

Having a full 3-piece bathroom in the basement will make it easy to transition the new play-room into a bedroom when the time is right. The bathroom was finished with modern fixtures and a beautiful off-set tile floor. The floor is complimented by the similarly stunning smooth shower tile.

The last step of this basement development included installing the pot lights and running the speaker wires and wall conduit for a custom entertainment system. The homeowners finally have their perfect TV room and can make full use of their basement without any of their former worries.

The Garage

We do not know why, but the detached garage was built with only a partial concrete curb and no water-proofing for the exposed drywall and framing components. Anyone who has experience driving in a Calgary winter knows that snow accumulates under our cars and melts when we park in the garage. It only took one winter to realize that this would be a problem in this garage. As the snow melted the water spread until it reached the exposed wood an drywall. The wet materials were weakened and became at risk of decomposing.

The best solution was to continue the existing curb around the entire perimeter. There was a challenge however because the new concrete had to be framed and poured under the existing walls. To be able to do the job properly we supported 35% of the existing walls with custom framework and built a form for the curb. We installed some rebar to maintain structural integrity and integrate the new concrete with the old. One the new concrete had removed the temporary supports and re-finished the walls.